Hamlet
Hamlet Critique
Hamlet, a play by William Shakespeare, was written in approximately the middle to late 1590's, while Shakespeare's work was flourishing, and his company was putting up the Globe Theater. Shakespeare was a profound writer, and Hamlet is considered to be his most prolific writing, and is a favorite among the readers. It is a tragic tale of conspiracy, death, disease, and a young man's struggle to avenge his father's murder.
I would like to set apart Hamlet from the array of characters in this play, as to analyze him from a formalist point of view. To start off, Hamlet was, of course, the main character. As a promising king, his life is suddenly torn apart by his father's death, and his mother, Gertrude's hasty marriage to the late king's brother, Claudius. Hamlet is soon there after, visited by the ghost of his late father, who tells him the gruesome tale of his true death-poisoned by Claudius, his own dear brother. The ghost tells Hamlet he must remember, and thus avenge his death rightfully. Though the tale was horrifying, Hamlet agrees, and begins ...
William Shakespeare composed the play Hamlet, around 1600-1601. This play, named after his only son, in my opinion is one of Shakespeare’s best works. The play shows the literal as well as the realistic sides of people during this culture as well as those generations to come. During the play, Hamlet’s character went through several different transitions. In the beginning he was shown as a child, by his actions and curiosity, but towards the end of play his manhood begins surface and he begins to be aggressive at getting what he wants.
Hamlet Compare and contrast between Hamlet and Laertes William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” is known as the best tragedy play of all times. Each one of the characters has their own unique personality, but some of them are very alike. Hamlet, the main character, and Laertes, one of the other leading roles, are very much alike but at the same time slightly different. Their experiences collide and they both make some decisions, which change their lives forever. Hamlet and Laertes both display impulsive reactions when angered.
Something was definitely rotten in the state of Denmark. The king was dead of a murder most foul, a betrayal from his own brother, young Hamlet was thrown out of the frying pan, which was his father's passing, and into the fire of revenge. On would think that an act of revenge such as this, retribution from an enraged son over the unjust murder of his father, would come so quickly, wildly, and brutally, driven by anger and rage. This simply was not the case in William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. As the young prince Hamlet carefully thought out his plans for revenge over a rather large amount of time due to his own apparent weakness, inaction. "The smallest deed is greater than the grandest intention"(Stokes 90). Hamlet was full of grand ideas and intentions on how to kill the King, but he failed to act and to carry out the deed that was his revenge, the destruction of Claudius. Why did Hamlet choose and it was his choice, not to take revenge on Claudius quickly and decisively? Hamlet had his own reasons for inaction; the strategy that he felt best suited his revenge.
Appearance can be defined as a superficial aspect; a semblance; or pretending something is the case in order to make a good impression. Reality on the other hand can be defined as the state of being actual or real; the state of the world as it really is rather than as you might want it to be. It is undeniably noticeable that throughout Shakespeare’s Hamlet many characters are playing roles: acting rather than being. This unquestionably reminds the reader of reality, where a person can play various roles. In reality, as well as in the play, it is not always easy to distinguish what is true from what only appears to be true. Throughout Hamlet, Shakespeare illuminates the theme of appearance versus reality by portraying principal characters. The principal characters put on an act to conceal their true motives and use it to carry out that motivation as well.
In Lesson 19 of the videotape “Literary Visions';, the actor performs two interpretations of the monologue, “To be or not to be';. As said in the video, there are many ways that an actor can choose to interpret that particular speech in Hamlet. Many actors relish the opportunity to perform Hamlet, because of that particular speech. In a play, the actors’ interpretation of the character is what gives the audience the background and insights into the characters’ feelings, since there is not a narrator, like in a short story. Each actor’s version of Hamlet is different, and therefore the interpretation by the audience will be different. There is not a right or wrong interpretation, but a change in the actor’s tone of voice or facial expressions, can transform the meanings of the words. As seen in the video, the actor’s two interpretations of “To be or not to be'; from the video are very different from each other.
Ecclesiastes 7: 17 said “Be not overly wicked, neither be a fool. Why should you die before your time?” Suicide is an important part in the bible. It is one of the things that is considered a sin in Christianity. The bible has lessons and commandments for Christians to follow and those lessons are represented in books. In the early 1600’s religion was an important part of people’s lives and writers incorporated it into their writings. William Shakespeare wrote Hamlet in the early 1600’s and he wrote about religion while he was writing about a prince’s revenge on his uncle. His uncle killed his father and he was prepared to take revenge. Hamlet and Christianity are both about the good, the bad and the afterlife which makes Hamlet a Christian play.
In Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, protagonist Hamlet, experiences many rises and falls throughout the play that have a major impact on his mentality decline. The way in which readers interpret the character, Hamlet, can vary in many ways. For instance, Hamlet delivers many soliloquies throughout the work, giving readers a better insight of his state of mind. Additionally, two significant soliloquies in both Acts II and III show a clear view of Hamlet’s mental and emotional state.
Many people question the psychological condition of the character Hamlet in the sixteenth century play Hamlet written by William Shakespeare. One of the reasons that the mental health of hamlet is in question by many people is the result of hamlet's actions as well as his reactions to events that occur during the play. Some people argue that the character Hamlet is insane, while others may argue that his insanity can be justified by several means such as his need for justice of his father's murder. However, Hamlet's need for justice or revenge does not necessarily justify Hamlet's behavior in the play. In addition, Hamlet's behavior falls into several categories of insanity such as shizophrenia. Therefore, there are many ways in which it can be proven that hamlet may truly be insane.
Hamlet’s self destruction is due to his reluctance to accept the role that he has been cast in. His reluctance leads to his delay which is the reason for his self destruction. His delay causes him to over think situations. He delays by spending his time pondering about situations and making plans that do not solve the heart of the problem; until the very end.
William Shakespeare is seen to many as one of the great writers in history. More specifically, the characters in his plays are reviewed and criticized and have been so for nearly four centuries. The character that many have revered Shakespeare for is perhaps the greatest such character ever in literature, Hamlet from Shakespeare's Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. The commentary and response to this legend of literature is of wide array and opinion, though most, such as Pennington, believe him to be a truly magnificent character: "Hamlet is perhaps the cleverest hero ever written, the subject of the first European tragedy, a form of genius. A type Shakespeare despaired of writing thereafter, having perceived that the heroes of tragedies must be sublime idiots" (185). However, despite his clear gifts and aura, Hamlet was a doomed character from the beginning: Hamlet is dominated by an emotion that is inexpressible. It is thus a feeling he cannot understand, he cannot objectify it, and it therefore remains open to poison life and to obstruct action" (Eliot 25). Thus, Hamlet, while possessing the traits of no other men of his time, a true Renaissance man, was doomed from the beginning of the play partly by forces he could not control, and also partly by his own character. It leads to a slow but definite ending to one of literature's great characters, one that he could not control. In the end, Hamlet was out of place in his environment, he was simply not meant to be.
Why do people crave power, fortune, and lust when all it leads to is corruption, greed, and/or death? In the play of Hamlet by William Shakespeare, one character's greed for power and fortune leads to tragedy. First, Claudius murders King Hamlet and attempts to kill prince Hamlet inorder to keep the crown to rule Denmark. Secondly, Claudius sets up a plan that involves putting a poisonous pearl in the winner's victory cup that eventually Gertrude drinks. He also puts poision on the tip of the sword that eventually kills Laertes in the duel. Lastly, Claudius sends Rosencranz & Guildenstern to escort Hamlet to England to secretly be killed so that he can keep the crown. One may object that Polonius' death was not the fault of Claudius' greed because Hamlet killed Polonius. However, Hamlet was obsessed with killing Claudius because he wanted to seek revenge for his father. Claudius' Greed for power is to blame for all the tragedies in the play Hamlet.
Hamlet by William Shakespeare is one of the world’s most revered literature. The main character, Hamlet, is arguably one of the most intriguing characters the playwright ever developed. Hamlet is daring, philosophical, mentally unstable at times, and clever. Throughout the play though, these characteristics change and/or diminish as Hamlet is put through a plethora of unfortunate events. His father is murdered by Claudius, his mother soon after marries Claudius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern betray him, and his girlfriend most likely commits suicide. While Hamlet is incredibly philosophical, indecisive, and full of resentment in the beginning of the play, he becomes violent, instinctive, caring and sympathetic towards the end of the play.
In the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, the main character, Hamlet, is often perceived by the other characters in the play as being mentally unbalanced because he acts in ways that drive them to think he is mad. Hamlet may very well be psychotic; however, there are times when he “feigns insanity” in order to unearth the truth surrounding his father's death. This plan seems to be going well until Hamlet's mental state slowly begins to deteriorate. What began as an act of insanity or antic disposition transitions from an act to a tragic reality. After studying Hamlet's actions, one will notice that as the play progresses, his feigned insanity becomes less and less intentional and devolves into true mental illness.
Hamlet is a tale of tragedy by Shakespeare which tells the story of the prince of Denmark who is on a quest to avenge the death of his father at the hands of his uncle whom subsequently becomes king of Denmark. This is what fuels the fire in the play as Hamlet feels the responsibility to avenge his father’s death by his uncle Claudius; however, Claudius assumed the throne following the death of hamlets father. It is in this context that we see the evolution of hamlets character from a student and young prince of Denmark to the protagonist and tragic hero in the play.